Hello all!
I'm sitting here trying to think about what I need to fill you in on from the past couple of weeks but the reality is there just isn't a whole lot that I think is terribly noteworthy. I suppose the new of everything has worn off and I'm really beginning to settle into what feels like a normal life here. Things are becoming routine and I like that.
We had 3 days off school on the 7th, 8th, and 9th and honestly, I was so bored. I can only watch so many movies before I start to go a bit stir crazy. The night of the 9th I went to a barbecue with some friends where we watched the Cardinals/ Cubs game, played some frisbee, and ate together. It was a fun way to bring in my birthday. My birthday itself was super uneventful with the exception of the delicious cheesecake that I had that day. My big birthday surprise came on Monday at school...my kiddos practically pushed me out the door at the beginning of lunch and slammed the door behind me. A bit later, one of them came out the the cafeteria and asked me to please come to the classroom right away. I opened the door to be showered by confetti and shouts of "surprise" followed by a big group hug from my whole class. My 5th graders had worked together to plan quite the party complete with soda, food, a cake, and decorations. I was blown away! I'm sure these sweet kids have no idea how much it meant to me, but it is a memory I will forever treasure.
Classes proceeded as usual last week. 5th grade started long division and at first I was very discouraged because they really weren't getting it. By the end of the week though, they were all flying through the problems we were working on. I just love those moments when you can tell that they're really understanding new concepts. The 6th graders had a math quiz last week and most of them did really well which was super encouraging. In English classes, we've been working on writing and rewriting letters because I'm working on setting up pen pals with a class back home. The kids all seem pretty excited about this so I hope it goes well.
Tomorrow begins exam week. The students have tests in 2 subjects each day and we only have regular classes for half of the day. I'm thinking it will be a fairly easy week from a teaching standpoint as half of the day will be taken up by tests and I'm not introducing any new material while the kids are testing. We'll see I guess.
We've got Folklore Dance Day coming up next Friday and have FINALLY planned our trip to the ruins. I'm really looking forward to experiencing these pieces of Honduran culture. Hopefully I'll even get to learn some dances on Folklore Day!
Well, I suppose that's all I've got for now. Like I said, nothing terribly exciting.
Until next time, much love from Honduras!
Sunday, October 18, 2015
Friday, October 2, 2015
When I don't even want to smile...
Another 2 weeks have flown by. I can't actually believe that's it's October already! Where have the past 2 months gone?? Seriously, where? I suppose they've gone to hours and hours of teaching, lesson planning, grading, etc. And that's a good thing. Just the other day, I left school thinking about how much I love my job and how this was definitely the thing that I was meant to be doing. And let me tell you, that is an amazing feeling. So let's recap what's happening in school:
I am enjoying teaching math more than I ever thought possible. If you know much about me at all, you know that math was always my least favorite subject. I have always said I'm terrible at math, but really that's just in comparison to all of the other subjects that I never had to even try to understand (I don't mean that to sound like I'm bragging, at all). There's just something about introducing a new concept and then seeing that ah ha moment on the kids faces when they get it that I absolutely love. The other day I was working with one of my 6th graders who generally struggles a bit and he would call me over after each step of the problem he was working on and ask if it was right. His face absolutely lit up every time I told him it was correct and congratulated him. It literally made my entire day.
We've had some fun in my language classes lately as I decided to take a week off from drilling the grammar concepts in the book. The kids get so bored with the textbook and I can't say I blame them. I know native English speakers who can't tell me how to form the tenses these kids are trying to learn. This week, we learned vocabulary for giving directions and then did activities with said vocabulary. My fifth grade classroom became a town on a grid system and each student go to decide what location their desk would be. We took turns directing each other from place to place. They had such a fun time with this. Perhaps my favorite thing this week was the map project I gave to each class. The students were to make up their own town and draw a map of the town. They could be as creative as they wanted and include whatever they wanted as long as they labeled everything in English and presented to the class in English.
Perhaps the most noteworthy thing I can think of as I sit here writing this is how much I laugh with these kids. They say that laughter is life's best medicine and I think that's the truest thing I have ever heard. If you follow my other blog at all, you may know that I have been at odds with my own mind, if you will, for quite some time now. Coming here in such a state was terrifying, I won't lie to you. Most days I don't want to get out of bed and barely have the motivation to do anything. Just functioning is a struggle. But then something happens when I hear my little 4th grade boys giggling and I ask them what's funny and one of them says to me, "Miss, I am a princess!" and they just crack up laughing and I can't help but bust up right along with them. Or when I hand out a math test and a kid says to me, "Wait, I need this first..." and puts on a bear hat. These kids can make me laugh hysterically when it takes everything in me just to paste a fake smile on. I am so grateful for their ability to do that, it's those little moments that keep me going.
I suppose that's really all I've got for you this evening. Thank you for following along with my journey. Until next time, much love from Honduras to you!
I am enjoying teaching math more than I ever thought possible. If you know much about me at all, you know that math was always my least favorite subject. I have always said I'm terrible at math, but really that's just in comparison to all of the other subjects that I never had to even try to understand (I don't mean that to sound like I'm bragging, at all). There's just something about introducing a new concept and then seeing that ah ha moment on the kids faces when they get it that I absolutely love. The other day I was working with one of my 6th graders who generally struggles a bit and he would call me over after each step of the problem he was working on and ask if it was right. His face absolutely lit up every time I told him it was correct and congratulated him. It literally made my entire day.
We've had some fun in my language classes lately as I decided to take a week off from drilling the grammar concepts in the book. The kids get so bored with the textbook and I can't say I blame them. I know native English speakers who can't tell me how to form the tenses these kids are trying to learn. This week, we learned vocabulary for giving directions and then did activities with said vocabulary. My fifth grade classroom became a town on a grid system and each student go to decide what location their desk would be. We took turns directing each other from place to place. They had such a fun time with this. Perhaps my favorite thing this week was the map project I gave to each class. The students were to make up their own town and draw a map of the town. They could be as creative as they wanted and include whatever they wanted as long as they labeled everything in English and presented to the class in English.
Perhaps the most noteworthy thing I can think of as I sit here writing this is how much I laugh with these kids. They say that laughter is life's best medicine and I think that's the truest thing I have ever heard. If you follow my other blog at all, you may know that I have been at odds with my own mind, if you will, for quite some time now. Coming here in such a state was terrifying, I won't lie to you. Most days I don't want to get out of bed and barely have the motivation to do anything. Just functioning is a struggle. But then something happens when I hear my little 4th grade boys giggling and I ask them what's funny and one of them says to me, "Miss, I am a princess!" and they just crack up laughing and I can't help but bust up right along with them. Or when I hand out a math test and a kid says to me, "Wait, I need this first..." and puts on a bear hat. These kids can make me laugh hysterically when it takes everything in me just to paste a fake smile on. I am so grateful for their ability to do that, it's those little moments that keep me going.
I suppose that's really all I've got for you this evening. Thank you for following along with my journey. Until next time, much love from Honduras to you!
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